Expressing "although" with "suiran" and "danshi"

"虽然 ... 但是 ... " (suīrán ... dànshì ... ) expresses that while the former part of the sentence is true, there is an adverse reaction in the latter part. Here's the basic structure:

虽然 + Subject + 但是 + Contrary Reaction

Simply put, the pattern means Although...but.... in English, and is generally used in the same manner. Be aware that "可是" can be used interchangeably with "但是".

Here are some examples:

• 虽然 他 是 美国 人 ，但是 他 还 没 去 过 华盛顿。
• 虽然 她 说 不 太 饿，但是 她 点 了 很 多 菜。
• 他 虽然 给 别人 很 热情 的 感觉，可是 他 其实 是 一个 坏人。

Sources and further reading

Books

• Common Chinese Patterns 330 (pp. 217)
• Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (pp. 256 - 257)